First Record of Pterois russelii in the Sunderban Biosphere Reserve, India

Plaintail turkeyfish, Pterois russelii Bennett, 1831 had been reported from coastal parts of West Bengal, but there is no record of this species from Sunderban Biosphere Reserve or any part of Indian mangrove ecosystems. The current communication adds P. russelii, as a new record to the ichthyofaunal diversity of the Indian Mangroves, as well as Sunderban Biosphere Reserve. The specimen was collected from the Canning fish landing area during a local survey focused on the study of mangrove-associated fishes of Sunderban. Canning is located in the Transitional zone of Sunderban Biosphere Reserve. This is the first record of P. russelii from any Indian Mangrove area.